Adult-Gerontological Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
The Adult-Gerontological Acute Care Nurse Practitioner can legally diagnose and treat medical conditions. In addition, some AG ACNPs provide direct patient management from admission to discharge in collaboration with the physician and other members of the healthcare team. AG ACNPs also may continue to follow the patient into the outpatient setting to ensure successful transition after discharge and complete resolution of transition needs. The structure of the role depends upon the collaborative agreement with physicians and other members of the healthcare team. Students entering the Adult-Geron Acute Care track must have at least two years of recent (within the past five years) direct patient care experience in Acute Care (i.e., EMERGENCY, ICU, or MED-SURG) with one of those two years required to be in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) upon admission. Specialty areas such as the Cath lab, GI lab, Radiology, OR, Recovery Room etc. are not considered Acute Care management.
All students in the Adult-Geron Acute Care Nurse Practitioner specialty are required to attend one* mandatory Clinical Skills Intensives (CSI) during the fall term in which they are enrolled in AHN 568 and AHN 571.
The clinical skills intensive provides hands-on instruction for common advanced practice assessments and procedures pertinent to the acute care setting. Instruction is provided by the USA Simulation Program.
Students must sign-up to attend one session and can select preferred dates on a first come, first serve basis. Simulation will contact students via JagMail with information on how to sign-up three months prior to the scheduled dates.
Please note the dates are for Clinical Skills Intensives only. The track coordinator may provide orientation dates, which are separate from CSI and Simulation.
The program does not require a thesis or dissertation; however, students are required to complete an evidence-based scholarly project that results in a quality improvement change and has a substantial effect on healthcare and patient outcomes. Residency requirements for the scholarly project can be completed in the student’s home region with an approved mentor.
Graduates who complete the Adult-Gerontology ACNP program meet educational eligibility for national certification through the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN).
BSN-DNP students complete all support, MSN specialty, DNP Core, DNP Project Planning & Development and Residency courses for a total of 69 credit hours. The following DNP core courses are required for the completion of the MSN degree: NU 607, NU 608, NU 610, and NU 613. Both MSN and DNP degrees must be completed within seven years. The MSN portion must be completed within the first five years of the program.
MSN-DNP students adding a new specialty must complete the support courses if they have not previously completed the courses in their MSN program. They must complete the specialty courses and support courses, if needed, to complete the Post-Graduate Certificate. The DNP core, DNP Project Planning & Development, and Residency courses are required for completion of the DNP degree. This program is a total of 60 credit hours or 69 credit hours if support courses are needed. The Post-Graduate Certificate must be completed within two calendar years. The student has seven years to complete both the Post-Graduate Certificate and DNP degree for this program.
MSN-DNP for Advanced Practice Roles must only complete the DNP core, DNP Project Planning & Development, and Residency courses to complete the DNP degree. This is a total of 36 credit hours. The student has a total of seven years to complete the degree requirements.
| Adult-Geron Acute Care NP |
|---|
| Support Courses |
| NU 518 - Advanced Nursing Assessment 3 credit hours |
| NU 545 - Physio-pathological Basis of Advanced Nursing 3 credit hours |
| NU 578 - Pharmacology for Advanced Practice Nurses 3 credit hours |
| Adult-Gerontological Acute Care NP Specialty Courses |
| AHN 568 - Introduction to Adult-Geron Acute Care NP 3 credit hours |
| AHN 571 - Health Promotion/Disease Prevention & Issues for Adult-Geron Acute Care NP 2 credit hours |
| AHN 572 - Adult-Geron Acute Care NP I 3 credit hours |
| AHN 573 - Adult-Geron Acute Care NP Practicum I - 180 Clinical Hours 3 credit hours |
| AHN 574 - Adult-Geron Acute Care NP II 3 credit hours |
| AHN 575 - Adult-Geron Acute Care NP Practicum II - 180 Clinical Hours 3 credit hours |
| AHN 576 - Adult-Geron Acute Care NP Practicum III - 240 Clinical Hours 4 credit hours |
| AHN 577 - Adult-Geron Acute Care NP III 3 credit hours |
| DNP Core Courses |
| NU 607 - Scientific Underpinnings of Advanced Nursing Practice 3 credit hours |
| NU 608 - Evidence-Based Practice and Quality Improvement in Healthcare 3 credit hours |
| NU 610 - Healthcare Policy and Finance 3 credit hours |
| NU 613 - Organizational & Systems Leadership 3 credit hours |
| NU 611 - Translating Evidence Into Practice Systems 3 credit hours |
| NU 612 - Clinical Prevention and Population Health 3 credit hours |
| NU 615 - Quality Improvement and Outcomes Assessment 3 credit hours |
| NU 616 - Data Management & Decision Making in Complex Healthcare Systems 3 credit hours |
| Adult-Gerontological Acute Care DNP Project Planning & Development and Residency |
| AHN 604 - Adult-Geron Acute Care NP PP&D 3 credit hours |
| AHN 617 - Adult-Geron Acute Care NP Residency I 180 specialty clinical hours 3 credit hours |
| AHN 618 - Adult-Geron Acute Care NP Residency II 180 specialty clinical hours 3 credit hours |
| AHN 619 - Adult-Geron Acute Care NP Residency III 180 specialty clinical hours 3 credit hours |
The University of South Alabama Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) program provides the skills necessary for a rewarding career. Graduates are eligible and prepared to complete the appropriate national certification exam and apply for licensure to practice as an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN). It is the graduate’s responsibility to ensure the program meets the requirements to practice in their selected state or U.S. territory.
Contact
Please feel free to contact Dr. Jennifer Miller for more information about this specialty: jennifermiller@southalabama.edu.